why are energy companies pushing smart meters? what's the catch??

Alnat1

A meter can't put a customer into difficulties, all it does is record how much energy has been used.

Occasionally energy companies are unable to collect the data remotely from smart  meters and will issue estimated bills. If the customer doesn't bother to check the bill they won't be aware it's estimated. Over time this could mean they get behind on payments if they are using more energy than the estimates.

The solution is keep an eye on bills, make sure the correct readings appear on them (as you would with a non-smart meter) and give manual readings if your company is struggling.

Problems with switching only happened with the old SMETS1 type meters and these are no longer installed. The SMETS2 meters allow for faster switching, often within a few days now..

Gerry1

Alnat1 said:

Problems with switching only happened with the old SMETS1 type meters and these are no longer installed.

Nope.  Many people without smart meters had problems switching, or after switching.  For example, I was repeatedly billed by BG for a period long before I joined them.

l'd left Neon Reef and paid in full well before they went bust, and BG became the SoLR.  Months later BG quietly revised my BG start date by several months.  Eventually they refunded the overcharge, only for their billing system to keep making the same mistake over and over again.  They couldn't prevent the cycle of errors repeating endlessly, so they had to make a one-off payment to correct it (plus £100 compo for the months of aggro).

Alnat1 said:

The SMETS2 meters allow for faster switching, often within a few days now..

Nope.  Regardless of meter type, Ofgem rules mean that suppliers must switch your electricity or gas supply from your old supplier to your new supplier within 5 working days.  If they do not, your new supplier must pay you £30. The £30 will be paid automatically into either your energy account or bank account.